Philippians 1:1-11
1 Paul and Timothy, bondservants of Jesus Christ,
To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the bishops and deacons:
2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Thankfulness and Prayer
3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, 5 for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ; 7 just as it is right for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart, inasmuch as both in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers with me of grace. 8 For God is my witness, how greatly I long for you all with the affection of Jesus Christ.
9 And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, 10 that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, 11 being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
Paul the apostle and his protege Timothy both considered themselves servants of Jesus Christ, not important church officials with special privileges. Their mindset was that Christ had bought them at a price from slavery to sin and judgment, and so they were happy to be slaves of righteousness (Romans 6:18, 22-23) in the Lord instead. Based on their calling in Christ they were able to sincerely wish the same grace and peace from God on those they wrote and ministered to in Philippi concerning real unity and joy in the peace Christ brought them. Paul was ever thankful for how far they had come in their sanctification so far and had fond memories as he prayed in that gladness for their state. He looked back at where they had begun in their salvation and how far they progressed and was thankful for their friendship and fellowship in the gospel they shared together. He expressed his God-given confidence for them which applies equally to us, namely that God would certainly finish the work He had started in them. They could bank on the fact that they would not be abandoned or left on their own to grow in maturity in Christ. We can also hold to this certain promise of the gospel work of the One who will never leave or forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:5-6, Hebrews 13:5). The apostle could say this with confidence based on God’s word and work until the Lord’s return and carried them in his heart for that faithfulness on their part to follow Christ and heed the scriptures which they read and heard. These Philippians stuck with Paul when he was thrown in prison for the gospel that they lived for and were a confirmation of his ministry of grace to him resulting in his great care and longing for each of them in continued fellowship and good reports of the grace of God working in them. He therefore prayed for their love to increase more and more in the knowledge of the word and of the Lord Himself. He prayed they would continue to approve the excellent things and shun the sinful and empty pursuits and desires of the world in which they once walked, a good reminder for us in this present evil age where compromises are made daily with good intentions but harmful witnesses and personal effects. We are called to be holy like He is and to be sincere without causing offense to others or cause them to sin. We are called to bear fruits of the righteousness of Jesus Christ in which we stand by His grace (Romans 5:2, 1 Peter 5:12) to honor the Father with glory and praise to call us out of this world and into the light of His holiness by living His word written on our hearts. This is the gospel calling to all in Christ as bondservants of the Lord.
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